Bassam Abdel Majeed

Bassam Abdel Majeed (Adyghe: Бэсим-Абдулмэджид, romanized: Bəsim-Abdulmədjid; Arabic: بسام عبد المجيد Basām 'Abd al-Majīd; born 1950) is a Syrian military officer, politician and diplomat of Circassian origin.^[1]

Bassam Abdel Majeed
بسام عبد المجيد‎
Minister of Interior
In office 11 February 2006 – 23 April 2009
President	Bashar al-Assad
Prime Minister	Mohammad Naji Al Otari
Preceded by	Ghazi Kanaan
Succeeded by	Said Mohammad Sammour
Ambassador to Belarus
In office ?–2019
President	Bashar al-Assad
Succeeded by	Farouk Taha
Personal details
Born	1950 (age 74–75) Beer Ajam, Syria
Political party	Ba'ath Party
Military service
Rank	Major General

Early life and education

Majeed is of Circassian origin,^[2] and was born into a Sunni Muslim family in 1950 in Beer Ajam, a village in the Quneitra Governorate in southwestern Syria.^[3] He attended Syria's Air Force Academy, graduating in 1970.^[3]

Career

Majeed held several military and security posts.^[3] He was director of the military police from 2003 to 2006.^[2] He was appointed the interior minister of Syria on 11 February 2006,^[2][4] succeeding Ghazi Kanaan.^[5][6] When he was in office, Hezbollah commander Imad Mugniyeh was killed in Damascus in February 2008.^[7] Majeed blamed Israel and described the attack as a "terrorist act".^[8]

Majeed's term lasted until 23 April 2009 and he was replaced by Said Mohammad Sammour.^[9] In October 2009, Majeed was appointed Syria's ambassador to Kuwait.^[10]

Personal life

Majeed is married, and has two daughters and one son.^{[citation needed]}